Art of producing aluminum chlorid.



, MfBARNETT & L. BURGESS.

ART OF PRODUCING ALUMINUM CHLORID- APPLICATION FILED AUG. 14. 1916 1,218,588.

Patented Man 6, 1917.

To all zihom it'may concerns UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

- MAURICE rmn'rr AND tours Brmenss, or EW YORK, 11. Y., Assmnons 'ro nncnnon cnnrucu. comrumr, A conroaa'rron or DELAWARE.

ear or raonucmonnummum cnnomn.

Application filed August 14,

Be it known that we, MAURICE BARNn'rr and LowsBURenss, citizens ofthe United States, residing at New York, in the county of New Yorkand State of New York, have inven'ted'or discovered certain new and useful Improvements in the Art of Producing Aluminum Chlorid, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention or discovery relates to the art of roducing anhydrous aluminum chlov rid (A 01,), and has for its object the production of this substance at less expense than is involved 'in the production thereof "by processes heretofore in. use. 'In practisin the present invention or' discovery aluminum carbidistreated with dry hydrochloric acid as in a retort at a temperature sufficiently hi h to effect conversion of the aluminum carbid into aluminum chlorid and volatili-zation of, the latter, and the volatilized aluminum chlorid is then conducted to a condenser or condensers in which aluminum chlorid .will be .deposited, and from which certain gas or gases, resulting from the conversion of the aluminum carbid intoaluminum chlorid, will be conducted or allowedto escape. Instead of thus treating aluminum carbid alone with dry hydrochloric acid gas in the presence of heat,

aluminum carbid and metallic aluminum may be thus treated, in the production of anhydrous aluminum chlorid. The accompan' in drawing illustrates an apparatus by w ic the present invention or discovery, as thus generally stated, may

retort it will be subjected to the action of be carried into effect, although it will be understood that saidinvention or discovery may be practised by means of any suitable apparatus.

Referring to the drawing, 12 denotes a furnace which may be made of iron'and brick or other suitable material, and which will preferably be lined with some refractory substance. Within the furnace 12 is a retort 14 of any suitable refractory mate rial and within which the aluminum carbid, or aluminum carbid and metallic aluminum, to be treated will be placed, and in which Specification of Letters 2mm.

gate 22. By opening the sliding Patented Mar. 6, 1917. 1916. Serial No. 114,813.

dry hydrochloric acid gas which ma {.be introduced into the lo'werpart of the cliam ber of the retort through-a pipe 15 referv ably provided with a valve 16 b which the flow of gas to the chamber o the IGtOI'li may be regulated. Air and 'moisture will be excluded from .the retort and condensers as far as possible. The furnace andretort may be heated in any suitable manner, as

by means of oil firing and auxiliary gas burners 13.

The chamber of the furnace 12 is prefertac 17 having a charging hopper 18 p ovided with a movable cover 19, and in this receptacle 17 the aluminum carbid, or alumi- 21 beneath which 'is.a charging hopper 20 for the retort 14, said chargin hopper 20 being provided at its bottom w1th a sliding a suitable amount of heated material may be droppedinto the charging hopper 20 from ably provided at its upper 'part with a rece gate 21 whence it will fall into the retort 14-.when

the sliding gate 22 is opened. These sliding gates are 'rovided with handles21! and '22",

respective y, bywhich they may be 0 rated through openings in the wall of the liirnace and which openings may be closed by dropdoors 12, or otherwise.

The furnace 12 is provided near its top with a pipe 23 leading to a suitable-stack or chimney, and the said furnaceis provided at its lowerpart with an opening 24 opposite the bottom of the retort which is provided with a correspondin opening 25. hese openings may be close in .any suitable manner, as by a stopper 26 of refractory material and whichstoppermay be removed whenaccess .to the chamber of the retort is desired for the purpose of removing the spent or nearly spent material. The furnace and retort walls may be provided with peep-holes, if desired, and is common-with furnaces and retorts.

' densers are used, and in such case the first denser in any suitable manner.

condenser should be close to the furnace 12 and the other condensers of the series close to or in juxtaposition with each other. Each condenser, or condensingchamber, will preferably be provided at its upper part with a baffle plate 29 against which the volatilized material will impinge as it .enters the condensing chamber. The bafile plate 29 may be mounted in any's'uitable manner in the upper part of the condenser. Also each condenser is preferably provided at its top' with a man-hole closed by a stopper or cover 30, and other man-holes 31 in the lower parts of the condensers, and which afl'ord access to the lower parts of the chambers thereof, are closed by suitable stoppers 01'' covers 32. Also each condenser or condensing chamber is preferably provided at its bottom with a hinged door 33 which may be opened downwardly when the aluminum chlorid deposited in a condenser or condensing chamber is to be removed. The hinged door 33 may be held closed by a spring-catch 35. .The condensers may, for convenience, be mounted on an arch or arches, as 34.

In the conversion ofthe material within the retort 14 into aluminum chlorid a combustible gas is evolved, and such gas may be conducted from the upper part of the chamber of the last condenser 'to the burners 13 by a suitable pipe, 13, which will preferably beprovided with a valve 13,

thus utilizing this gas as a heating medium supplem ntal to' other heating means; or if it be not desired to utilize this combustible gas for'heatingthe furnace 12, or for other economic purposes, it may be allowed to escape from the chamber of the last con- The burners 13 will preferably be provided with pilot'lights by which they may be readily ignited, and which will avoid any danger of explosion by an accumulation of any gas which may accidentally escape from. the burners.

While it is deemed preferable to subject the aluminum carbid, or aluminum carbid and metallic aluminum, to a dull red to yellow heat (preferably from about 600 to 900 C.) when beiugtreated by the hydrochloric acid gas, and while it is considered preferable,-in order to expedite the volatilization, to previously'heat the mib" terial to be treated in the receptacle 17, the

invention is not to be understood as being limited to these temperatures, in treatment,

' or to a previous heating of the material to e highly .heated beforeof the aluminum carbid, or aluminum car- I bid and metallic aluminum, into aluminum chlorid will be more readily effected by heating the material itself, rather than the hydrochloric acid gas; and it will also be understood that at a higher temperature the operation will be more rapid than at a lower temperature.

In practising the invention as hereinbc-v fore described anhydrous aluminum chlorid can be' produced at less expense than by the processes by which this material has heretofore been produced.

Having thus'described discovery we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent: 1. The herein described process for proour invention or ducing aluminufn chlorid consisting in treating aluminum carbid with hydrochloric ,acid gas in the presence of heat.

he herein described process for producing aluminum chlorid, consisting in treating aluminum carbid with hydrochloric acid gas in the presence of heat, and subsequently condensing the volatil zed aluminum chlorid thus produced. 1

3.'The herein described process of producing aluminum chlorid, conslstmg -1 n treatingaluminum carbid-with hydrochloric acid gas in a heated retort within a furnace, thereby producing volatile aluminum chlorid, then condensing the volatilized chlorid and heating said furnace by conducting thereto and burning therein a combus- ,tible gas evolved in said process.

4. The herein described apparatus foruse' inproducing aluminum chlorid, consisting of a furnace, a retort in saidfurnace, a

charging receptacle in said furnace above said retort, a condenser to which the volatilized aluminum chlorid is conducted from said retort, a gas burner or burners for heating said furnace, and means for leading a combustible gas, evolved during the production of the aluminum chlorid, from said condenser to said burner or burners. I

5. The herein described apparatus for use in producing aluminum chlorid, consisting of a furnace, a retort in said furnace, a charging receptacle in said furnace above said retort, a condenser to which the volatilized aluminum chlorid is conducted from from said condenser to said burner or burn- .4

said retort, a. hopper between said receptacle ers. and retort, sliding ates at the bottoms of In testimony 'whereof weufiix our-signa- 13' said rece tacle and lopper, a gas burner or tures.

'5 burners or heating said furnace, and means for leading a combustible gas, evolved dur- MAURICE BARNETT. ing the production of the aluminum chlorid, -LOUIS BURGESS. 

